Jessica Claire Biel was born in Ely, Minnesota. Her mother Kimberly (née Conroe) is a homemaker and spiritual healer. Her father Jonathan Biel worked for GE as well as being an entrepreneur and business consultant .She has a younger brother, Justin, born in 1985, and is of German, French, English, and Choctaw ancestry.'s family moved frequently during her childhood, living in Texas, Connecticut, and Woodstock, Illinois before finally settling in Boulder, Colorado. While growing up, Biel played soccer and also trained as a gymnast. She is also an avid snowboarder.[edit] Early work

Biel initially trained to be a vocalist, and from age nine appeared in several musical productions in her hometown, playing lead roles in productions such as Annie, The Sound of Music, and Beauty and the Beast.

At twelve, Biel attended The International Modeling and Talent Association conference in Los Angeles where she was discovered and signed by a talent agency. She began modeling for print advertisements, and appeared in commercials for products such as Dulux Paint and Pringles.[2]

Biel also played the character Regrettal, a lead role in a low-budget musical short titled It's a Digital World, but the film was never released. At fourteen, after auditioning for several television pilots, Biel was cast as Mary Camden, the oldest daughter in the family drama 7th Heaven. The show ran 11 seasons, making it the longest-running family drama in U.S. television history. CareerBiel on board the USS Abraham Lincoln on June 18, 2004

Biel landed her first feature film role as Peter Fonda's granddaughter in the critically-acclaimed drama Ulee's Gold, released in 1997. Her performance earned her a Young Artist Award. In spring 1998, during a break from filming 7th Heaven, Biel starred in I'll Be Home for Christmas, playing the love interest of Jonathan Taylor Thomas.

In 2000, during the fourth season of 7th Heaven, Biel commented that she'd grown tired of playing the wholesome preacher's kid, and blamed the show for giving her a squeaky-clean image, causing her to lose out on a role in American Beauty (the part went to Thora Birch). In a last-ditch attempt to be released from her contract, she posed semi-nude for the cover of Gear magazine. The shoot sparked considerable controversy as Biel was still under eighteen at the time. Fans and producers of 7th Heaven were outraged, and the latter brought legal action against Gear magazine.[8] 7th Heaven producer Aaron Spelling made it clear that Biel would be staying with the show for the remainder of her contract, although Biel appeared in minimal episodes in season five, due to her character attending college out of state. She has stated that she regrets the Gear shoot but considers it a learning experience.[10]

In 2001, Biel played the love interest of Freddie Prinze, Jr. in the baseball themed movie Summer Catch. The next year she starred as promiscuous college student Lara in the ensemble movie The Rules of Attraction, an adaptation of the Bret Easton Ellis noveljessica bieljessica bieljessica bieljessica bieljessica bieljessica bieljessica bieljessica bieljessica biel